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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/28817448">dress</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/RMarie124/pseuds/RMarie124'>RMarie124</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Avatar: Legend of Korra</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Canon Divergent Sort of, F/M, First Kiss, Pre and post LOK, Songfic, Sort Of, best friends to lovers to enemies-ish to best friends to lovers, chapter 2 contains smut, first kiss for the second time, i have once again written two (2) party scenes, it's all about the full circle</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2021-01-17</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2021-01-17</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-13 11:28:17</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>Mature</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>2</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>5,681</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/28817448</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/RMarie124/pseuds/RMarie124</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>"Glittering lights meet Lin’s eyes as she enters the ballroom. She normally hates these types of events, but tonight feels different. The whole day had felt different, really. She’d woken up feeling like something big was looming in the distance, waiting for her at the end of whatever line today drew for her. And now, she stands in the lavish ballroom at the Republic City Event Center, looking for something, anything that will give her some sort of clue to what’s in store for her.</p>
<p>Or maybe, someone."</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Lin Beifong/Tenzin</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>16</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>69</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>1. carve your name into my bedpost</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_head_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff">
      <p>This fic was written at least a month ago, maybe more. I listened to Dress by Taylor Swift and the fic basically wrote itself. It was also partially written as a request from one of my friends. It's kind of canon divergent, and as a result, for some unspecified reason, Tenzin and Pema are no longer together, but in my head it was a mutual decision of some sort. </p>
<p>I've been excited to post this for a while, and both chapters are going up at once :)</p>
<p>all titles are from Dress by Taylor Swift.</p>
    </blockquote></div><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p class="p1">Glittering lights meet Lin’s eyes as she enters the ballroom. She normally hates these types of events, but tonight feels different. The whole day had felt different, really. She’d woken up feeling like something big was looming in the distance, waiting for her at the end of whatever line today drew for her. And now, she stands in the lavish ballroom at the Republic City Event Center, looking for something, <em>anything</em> that will give her some sort of clue to what’s in store for her.</p>
<p class="p1">Or maybe, <em>someone</em>.</p>
<p class="p1">She isolates the footsteps and heartbeat easily. He’s less grounded than his father, which is saying something, because his father barely touches the floor as is. Visual cues give him away too, with the party immediately flocking around the family of the ever loved Avatar Aang.</p>
<p class="p1">Tenzin’s eyes find hers in the fray and he looks momentarily floored before rearranging his face into the sly grin she’s come to know that is reserved only for her. Lin responds with a look of her own that is only for him: lips drawn to the side and a quirked eyebrow. He raises a hand to adjust the cloak draped over his shoulder, two fingers flashing briefly.</p>
<p class="p1">His heartbeat is just as nervous as her own, which has increased considerably. The gesture meant <em>meet me in two minutes</em> and Lin is so unsure and yet has never been so sure about anything in her life. Their relationship had been changing in the last few years, locked in a cycle of missed moments, tipsy slip-ups that they never talked about after they’d happened. She is sick of it, sick of pretending that she doesn’t want him with every fibre of her being, and sick of ignoring the fact that his body betrays the same.</p>
<p class="p1">So, she makes her way to the floor, stopping briefly to say hello to a few people who stop her. She tries to disguise the shaking in her hands by holding them clasped behind her back as often as she can manage.</p>
<p class="p1">As the only other one in the room dressed in traditional monk’s robes, Tenzin is easy to spot. He’s off to the side, pretending to be engrossed in a plaque on the wall. Lin changes direction easily and comes to stand beside him. His hand finds hers gradually, starting first with brushing against hers, then linking their pinky fingers together, before finally taking her hand in his. The touch sends a shiver through her and he glances at her.</p>
<p class="p1">“Are you okay?” His voice is quiet, yet still perfectly audible over the hum of conversation.</p>
<p class="p1">“Just cold.” She lies, secretly thankful that he can’t detect her deception.</p>
<p class="p1">Tenzin’s hand moves to the clasp of his cloak. “Would you like this? I don’t need it.”</p>
<p class="p1">“And cover this dress?” Lin looks up at him with a sly smile. “I didn’t pay a month’s worth of wages to not have it on display. Plus, the media would have a field day if I accepted your cloak.”</p>
<p class="p1">He turns to look at her, and her heart flutters at the way his expression changes. The dress is extravagant in a way that Lin doesn’t usually like to be, but she’d seen it in the window of a small shop in the city and had immediately known that she had to have it. The fabric clung to her, with a long slit on the skirt to allow for ease of movement. A new trend from the Fire Nation had been taking the City by storm recently, and this dress mimicked the thin straps that had risen so quickly to popularity. It was the same shade of green that Tenzin had so often said was his favorite on her.</p>
<p class="p1">Lin so rarely does things in her personal life that aren’t just for her, but purchasing this dress hadn’t just been for her benefit.</p>
<p class="p1">“Do you like it?” She lets go of his hand momentarily to turn around once, giving him the full effect of the dress.</p>
<p class="p1">Tenzin nods. “I <em>really</em> do.”</p>
<p class="p1">In a move that feels borderline scandalous, his free hand traces the strap of her dress until the center of the neckline. Lin feels all her breath leave her lungs. She struggles to speak.</p>
<p class="p1">“What did you want to talk to me about?” She asks, her voice betraying her nerves.</p>
<p class="p1">Tenzin nods his head towards a door that Lin hasn’t seen until now. “Follow me.”</p>
<p class="p1">Lin doesn’t look back as they slip through the door. They walk the silent hallways, her heeled shoes the only things making noise against the empty space. Their hands are still intertwined, and Lin finds her gaze flitting between the sight and the way Tenzin looks in the dim light of the building. He leads her around a corner and he comes to a halt, pulling her to face him. She looks up at him and recognizes the look on his face easily.</p>
<p class="p1">Tenzin is weighing in on a situation in his head, and Lin can only hope that involves her, maybe even <em>them. </em>Her nerves are on high, and she knows her hands are shaking again. She wills them to go still, but Tenzin’s stare bores into her, and it scares and exhilarates her at the same time.</p>
<p class="p1">“Lin.” He says, slowly, as if he’s trying out the syllables of her name for the first time.</p>
<p class="p1">Her name rolls off his tongue in a way that makes her heart stop. She’d give anything to hear him say her name like that again. He pulls her closer with their linked hands and she’s suddenly standing so <em>close</em> to him that she could reach up and—</p>
<p class="p1">“I’ve been thinking.” His voice cuts through her thoughts. “About you.”</p>
<p class="p1">Her tongue darts out to lick her lower lip. “What about me?”</p>
<p class="p1">“How you’re my best friend.” Her heart falters, and she feels herself getting ready to back away. “And how you’re easily the most beautiful person at that party. How much I want to kiss you, how badly I want to get that dress off of you. I’m sick of pretending like us making out when we’re drunk is a slip-up, because I don’t want it to be.”</p>
<p class="p1">“I bought this dress for you.” Lin blurts out, still reeling from his confession, unable to gather her thoughts properly. “And I don’t want to say us drunkenly making out is a slip-up either. It never was. It never should’ve been.”</p>
<p class="p1">She barely gets the words out before he’s kissing her, both hands framing her face. Soon, her back is hitting the wall, her hands coming to wrap around his neck while his hands trail a heated path down her sides. She silently thanks the designer of the dress for including a slit in the skirt, because she’s able to wrap her leg around his waist with ease, allowing for him to drag his hand down her bare thigh.</p>
<p class="p1">It’s dangerous, it’s borderline clandestine, and it sends a thrill through her.</p>
<p class="p1">His lips trail down her neck, his teeth grazing gently along her pulse, making her gasp. She holds his head closer to her, latching onto his robes with her other hand. Her head is spinning, consumed only with thoughts of how they’re <em>finally</em> doing this. The relief tastes sweet on her tongue, but maybe that’s just the lingering taste of <em>him</em> as he keeps placing kisses lower and lower until he’s at the lowest dip of the neckline of her dress.</p>
<p class="p1">“How long until they miss us?” Lin gasps out.</p>
<p class="p1">Tenzin sighs against her skin and tightens his grip on her thigh. “We should probably head back.”</p>
<p class="p1">She steals one more kiss. “Come to my place when this is over?”</p>
<p class="p1">They stand, straighten their clothing, and smile at each other. Tenzin takes her hand in his again and says before pulling her back into the party:</p>
<p class="p1">“I’d love to.”</p>
<p class="p1">——————————</p>
<p class="p1">It’s been a month since that night, and Lin finds herself drunk with Tenzin in her apartment, on a rant about how the press has hounded them since they’d gone out on their first official date. They’d been spotted walking in the park, hand in hand, and when Lin had gotten cold, Tenzin offered her his cloak. <em>What does it mean?</em> The articles had asked. So many insinuations have been made that sometimes she doesn’t know where she and Tenzin begin and those insinuations end.</p>
<p class="p1">“What I find so frustrating,” She huffs, taking a brief sip of her wine. “Is that the press thinks they know so damn much about us. They think they know who we are. But they don’t know <em>shit</em>, Tenzin.”</p>
<p class="p1">Tenzin stands, his own drink in hand, and crosses the small living room to stand in front of her, one arm wrapped around her waist. She feels some of her anger fade at his proximity, yet it still lingers.</p>
<p class="p1">“If they actually knew who we were, they’d lose their minds.” He muses.</p>
<p class="p1">Lin laughs. “They’d have a field day if they knew I actually had a personality. Here I am, perfect daughter of Chief Beifong, drinking with the <em>monk</em> son of Avatar Aang. Corrupting him in the late hours of the night.”</p>
<p class="p1">“I think that I’m doing plenty of corrupting, too.” He pulls her closer and kisses both her cheeks before kissing her lips.</p>
<p class="p1">The next morning, Lin wakes up to watch Tenzin tracing the letters she’d carved into her bedpost the previous night. His name will rest forever there, she vows then, no matter what happens. She carves her name in his bedpost days later, too. Years later when she was at her angriest, she’d wonder if Pema had ever seen her name there and known that she’d been there first. She’d learned every breath, every move, and all of the pathways of Tenzin’s arrows before Pema had. Her name deserved to stay there.</p>
<p class="p1">In that moment, though, Lin knows that they were made for this. For each other.</p>
<p class="p1">————————————</p>
<p class="p1">Lin nearly laughs at the absurdity of it all.</p>
<p class="p1">The dress still fits.</p>
<p class="p1">Although, carrying twenty-odd pounds of armor everyday is not something that allows one’s body to change too much, even in thirty years.</p>
<p class="p1">She looks at herself in the mirror, taking in the cut of the fabric, how it still moves seamlessly with her. She needs to get it cleaned, she knows. Maybe tailored to be more appropriate for her age (the slit worked at twenty, but not necessarily at fifty-six, and certainly not as the Chief of Police), but other than that, it’s perfect.</p>
<p class="p1">It’s a gamble, too.</p>
<p class="p1">Lin remembers clearly why she bought the dress, and remembers even more clearly what happened the night she first wore it out. The memory is tinged with a hint of sadness now, but it still flickers across her mind, pulling her back in to one of the best nights of her life. Could it be a mistake to wear it tonight? Could it be taken the wrong way?</p>
<p class="p1">No one there but them would remember the significance of this dress, right?</p>
<p class="p1">A week later, she arrives at a place she’s been in more times than she’d care to count, clad in the newly tailored dress. The material was clean, the beadwork re-done, and the cut in the skirt had been shortened, but still remained for ease of movement. She’d put the dress on earlier after picking it up from the tailor’s and she hadn’t been able to decide if the emotion that caught in her throat was laughter or tears.</p>
<p class="p1">But she’s here now, for some asinine reason, no doubt one of the councilmen thought it prudent to have a party about the newly passed laws in the City. She’s off the clock for the night, but her nerves are making her wish she wasn’t. Lin is protected in her armor. In this dress, she’s as vulnerable as she’d been that night.</p>
<p class="p1">“Aunt Lin!” A voice calls to her.</p>
<p class="p1">She turns to find Jinora practically running through the crowd to get to her, a smile across her face.</p>
<p class="p1">“Hi, Jinora.” She gives the young woman a quick hug before holding her at arms length. “You look beautiful tonight. Is that a new dress?”</p>
<p class="p1">Jinora laughs and grasps her hand. “You want to talk about <em>beautiful</em>? Did you even look at yourself in the mirror before you left your place?”</p>
<p class="p1">Lin rolls her eyes, trying to hide a smile.</p>
<p class="p1">“C’mon, dad is getting swarmed by women who think they have a chance.” Jinora grimaces. “We—well—<em>you</em> have to go save him.”</p>
<p class="p1">Lin allows herself to be dragged through the crowd by Tenzin’s eldest daughter. She feels nerves building again, after being momentarily placated by her short conversation with Jinora. It’s strange to her that Tenzin is single again but the vindictive part of her loves it. The majority of her, though, is scared. He’s always held a special place in her heart, and she doesn’t want to break the beautiful friendship they have. Lin doesn’t think she can lose him again.</p>
<p class="p1">They come to a stop in front of a charmingly funny scene; Tenzin looks entirely uncomfortable with all the attention he’s getting from women who clearly are just in it for the status of bedding the head of the Air Nation. Lin fights back a proud grin. If only they knew what they were missing out on.</p>
<p class="p1">Tenzin’s eyes raise to meet hers and she stands taller under his gaze, willing him to understand her intentions.He seems to, because he excuses himself rather absentmindedly from the group of women he’s surrounded by to come to stand in front of her. She ignores the dirty looks she gets from them, and instead focuses on the way Tenzin is looking at her.</p>
<p class="p1">Jinora excuses herself quietly, and out of the corner of her eye, Lin can see the encouraging smile on her face.</p>
<p class="p1">They are as alone as they can be in a crowd full of people who have watched them for their entire lives. If that night thirty years ago had to be handled with the utmost security, tonight is something else entirely. Her hands are shaking, and this time she doesn’t try to hide it, because she can see that his are too.</p>
<p class="p1">He bows to her, and she bows back, not allowing her hopes to fall one bit. Lin knows that Tenzin understands that right now is too public.</p>
<p class="p1">“It’s good to see you.” He smiles warmly and she reciprocates. “I hope that this doesn’t drag on forever. Councilman Ajuo’s decision to have this party was not one I agreed with, but here we are.”</p>
<p class="p1">She allows herself a laugh, covered by her hand. “I hope for the same thing. The sooner I can leave, the better.”</p>
<p class="p1">They share a friendly hug, where they can finally speak.</p>
<p class="p1">“Meet me in the hallway, five minutes.” He speaks lowly in her ear and she forces down all the feelings it draws up.</p>
<p class="p1">She only nods.</p>
<p class="p1">Five minutes later she’s in the hallway, waiting for him. As if on cue, he slips through the door, takes hold of her hand and has them hurrying down the empty space. Around one corner, then another, and suddenly they’re standing face to face, closer than they’ve been in a long time. Tenzin’s hands are brushing against hers, testing the waters before tangling their fingers together. Goosebumps rise on her skin at the proximity of his touch.</p>
<p class="p1">“Lin,” He starts, and suddenly in her mind, they’re twenty again. “I’ve dreamt about that dress more than I’d like to admit.”</p>
<p class="p1">She grins and steps just that bit closer to him. “It’s a good thing I kept it, then, isn’t it?”</p>
<p class="p1">“I’ve been thinking about you, you know.”</p>
<p class="p1">Lin doesn’t want to finish the conversation, because she knows that they both know exactly how it’s going to end and she just wants to get to that part, but she also knows that this is paramount.</p>
<p class="p1">“What about me?” She steps back, pulling him with. Her back hits the wall gently.</p>
<p class="p1">“How, through some stroke of luck, you’re my best friend again. How you were always there, how you’re once again the most beautiful person in that room. About how I should never have—”</p>
<p class="p1">Lin shakes her head, silencing him. “That comes later.”</p>
<p class="p1">He nods, and she leans up to kiss him. It’s such a beautiful echo of their first <em>real</em> kiss that she has to fight back tears as she pulls him closer. His hands have come to rest on her waist, her arms are thrown around his neck and <em>oh</em> he’s always been the best kiss of her life. He still is, and it’s intoxicating. It’s like he still has her body memorized, and soon she’s the metal she so easily manipulates in his hands, melted down, on fire.</p>
<p class="p1">If this is all from one kiss, she doesn’t know if she’ll survive what will come.</p>
<p class="p1">“Come home with me tonight.” He murmurs against her skin.</p>
<p class="p1">A million questions fly through her mind, what will the kids say, what will the press say, what will everyone on the island say? But then she realizes that she’s missing out on the moment that she’s been waiting selfishly for since Tenzin became single again last year. She pulls his face up to be level with hers, her thumbs brushing over his cheeks.</p>
<p class="p1">“I’d love to.”</p>
<p class="p1">———————</p>
<p class="p1">In the morning, she finds her name still carved in the place where she’d put it all those years ago.</p>
  </div></div>
<a name="section0002"><h2>2. 'cause i don't want you like a best friend</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p class="p1">
  <em>“Come home with me tonight.” He murmurs against her skin.</em>
</p>
<p class="p1">
  <em> “I’d love to.”</em>
</p>
<p class="p1">Their arrival on Air Temple Island is domestic in a way that Lin isn’t expecting, although she feels as though she should have. They fly back on Oogie, and Lin sits on the saddle with a sleepy Ikki’s head resting in her lap. Lin and Jinora chat about the event, and about their lives in general. It makes her heart ache and it calls her nerves back to the forefront.</p>
<p class="p1">She’s come home with Tenzin, and she’s not naïve to the motive of him asking the question. She wasn’t naïve in her motive of wearing the dress, either. So once they land, once they’ve said goodnight to the girls, once they’ve crossed into Tenzin’s room, they will be alone.</p>
<p class="p1">Lin hangs back as Tenzin says goodnight to Ikki and Jinora, before checking in on Meelo and Rohan. Then, he holds his hand out for her to take, and she walks beside him to his room. They chat absentmindedly about things that seem so inconsequential against the backdrop of what they’re about to do. They reach his room and Lin feels as though her shoes are glued to the floor.</p>
<p class="p1">“Lin, are you alright?” Tenzin asks, a worried expression on his face. “If you’re not comfortable with this, it’s perfectly alright. The guest room down the hall is clean and you’re more than welcome to stay there.”</p>
<p class="p1">She knows what he’s doing, giving her an out for something she knows for a fact that they both want. She shakes her head.</p>
<p class="p1">“I guess it’s just finally sinking in that we’re doing this, is all.” She looks up at him. “I don’t have any intention of sleeping in the guest room.”</p>
<p class="p1">He opens the door and she follows him in, taking in the sight of the room. It’s perfectly in order, an echo of how his childhood room had been. Photos rest on the dresser, and the blinds are closed, throwing the room into near total darkness until Tenzin switches on the small light on his bedside table.</p>
<p class="p1">She walks over to him and places a hand on his shoulder. He turns around and looks at her, eyes searching. She reaches up to undo the clasp of his cloak, and watches as the fabric falls to the ground. Then, she turns and looks at him over her shoulder before reaching back to grasp his hands and place them on her waist. His hands ghost up her sides to rest at the clasps of her dress before undoing them slowly. He leans down and kisses her shoulder, one hand running up her arm to push the strap of her dress down. He kisses her neck this time, and she sighs, tipping her head to the side to will him to continue. He does, and soon he’s kissing the underside of her jaw and she’s turning to melt into his heated kiss.</p>
<p class="p1">Her hands reach for his robes, eager to get them off. Heat has taken the place of nerves in her body and she wants to both rush and savor this moment. Her dress is hanging half off her body and one of her hands is in contact with the bare skin of his torso and she feels so wanton here in this moment. Her whole body aches for him, and she breaks their kiss with a small noise as his hand moves up her bare back to cradle the back of her head.</p>
<p class="p1">Lin opens her eyes just barely, looking at Tenzin through hooded lashes. He’s breathing just as heavily as she is, his eyes dark and lips swollen from their kissing. Slowly, Lin finishes removing Tenzin’s robes. He takes her hand, and moves so he’s sitting on the edge of his bed, looking up at her. She holds his gaze as she lets the dress slip down her body to pool at her feet. His gaze warms her in the cool of the night and emboldened, she sits on his lap, her thighs framing his hips. Tenzin’s hands slide up her thighs, coming to rest on her hips and she pushes into the touch. He places kisses on her chest, on the hollow of her throat, causing her to tip her head back.</p>
<p class="p1">“You really were the most breathtaking person in that room.” Tenzin whispers against her skin.</p>
<p class="p1">“That dress is only meant for you.” She traces the arrows down his arms. “Other people look at me in it, but you’re the only one who <em>sees</em> me in it.”</p>
<p class="p1">Tenzin’s grip tightens on her waist, his gaze locking with hers. He bites his bottom lip briefly, and she’s fascinated by the movement, memories of his mouth working beautifully between her thighs flooding into her mind. She cants her hips almost subconsciously, and his responding gasp is all she needs to know that this is what they both need right now.</p>
<p class="p1">She pulls him into a heated kiss, her hips rocking slowly against his. His hands skim up her sides, his thumbs brushing the undersides of her breasts and she barely holds back the moan that wants to force its way out of her throat. She runs her hands all over his torso, nails scraping lightly down his chest, the way she remembers he likes. It earns her a returned thumb brushing over her nipple and she keens at the touch.</p>
<p class="p1">If she wasn’t gone for him the second they kissed in the hallway earlier, she certainly is now. They’ve slipped so easily back into the way things were when they were together that it nearly shocks her. No words are needed, though she desperately wants to hear his voice, and her body slots over his so <em>easily</em> that it’s like they were apart for a few weeks instead of over 15 years.</p>
<p class="p1">Tenzin breaks the kiss and wraps his arms around her waist, slowly leaning them back until they’re laying on his bed. They look at each other for a few moments, one of Tenzin’s hands running gently up and down her back, and Lin tracing the arrow on his head. Lin basks in this lull in their momentum, as it helps her relax into the decision they’ve both made.</p>
<p class="p1">“You like the arrows, don’t you?” His voice is teasing.</p>
<p class="p1">Lin rolls her eyes, but smiles nonetheless. “C’mon, Ten. You know the answer to that.”</p>
<p class="p1">Tenzin’s hand runs up the length of her back to cup the back of her head, gently bringing her down until their faces are a breath apart. “Yeah, but I like to hear you say it.”</p>
<p class="p1">“I love your arrows. I’ve had a thing for them since you got them.” She whispers, her eyes fluttering shut as one of his hands snakes between them.</p>
<p class="p1">She raises her hips slightly to make room for his hand and sighs when he touches her. Her hands are braced on his chest, her forehead resting against his. It’s slow, languid, and beautiful. She marvels at how moments earlier she was frantic and now she’s still save for the motion of her hips against his hand. He touches her with practiced ease, moving just the way she likes. Her back arches and she lets out a moan that doesn’t sound like it came from her and yet she knows it did. There is not enough of him surrounding her from her place above him and she reaches down between them to stop the movement of his hand. He looks at her inquisitively.</p>
<p class="p1">“It’s not enough.” She whispers. “I don’t want to be on top of you like this right now.”</p>
<p class="p1">Tenzin nods and follows her to sit up, watching her as she moves to lay down, her head resting on the soft pillows. Lin reaches out a hand for him and he takes it, and she pulls him closer until he’s braced on top of her. He kisses her, his hand roaming her body until it guides one of her thighs open. Then his hand is gliding up, back to her center and—</p>
<p class="p1">“<em>Yes</em>.” She breathes, pushing her hips into his touch. Her voice is short of a whimper, but she finds that she wouldn’t have cared if it had been. “Ten, <em>yes</em>.”</p>
<p class="p1">He places open mouthed kisses to her neck, his teeth grazing lightly at her pulse point. Sparks shoot across her vision, and she braces a hand on his arm, her back arching from the sensation. He does it again, this time taking the flesh between his teeth and sucking gently. She moans, low in her throat, hips pushing against his hand desperately.</p>
<p class="p1">In all her life, it was only herself or him that had ever touched her so expertly. He had taken the time, unlike any other partner that she had since him, to learn all of her. And it seems he remembers. Lin swears she’s on fire, flames licking through her body even though he’s barely been touching her for more than five minutes. The precipice is already there and she’s ready to tumble off the edge, to let him catch her when she lands.</p>
<p class="p1">He curls his fingers and she bites down on her bottom lip to try and stifle the loudness of the moan she lets out. She just manages to come back to her senses, before begging him to <em>do that again</em> and he <em>does</em> and she’s falling over the edge, dragging him down for a messy kiss, her hips moving against his hand. It’s perfect, and as she catches her breath, she opens her eyes to look at him.</p>
<p class="p1">Lin is suddenly unsure of what to say to him. Tenzin his looking at her with dark eyes, though there’s tenderness beneath the gaze that she hasn’t seen directed towards her since—she shakes herself. No, this is not the time to dwell. His hand rests at her hip, the grip firm and grounding. Does she thank him? Does she return the favor?</p>
<p class="p1">The idea of returning the favor sparks something in her again, and she curses her momentary panic. <em>This is Tenzin</em>, she chides herself, <em>you know him inside and out</em>. Her hand snakes down his torso until it rests on the waistband of his undergarments. She looks at him inquisitively, asking permission. He nods, leaning down to kiss her gently.</p>
<p class="p1">In the end, he’s just as beautiful, if not more so than she remembers when he comes undone. She marvels at the sight, and silently wonders if he felt the same way watching her minutes earlier. The thought must’ve shown on her face, because he pulls her close and whispers a simple <em>yes</em>.</p>
<p class="p1">Lin finds that she could lay facing Tenzin for as long as they both have time for. His hand is warm and sure on her skin, tracing lines and words and drawings as his eyes searching hers. She isn’t nervous anymore, not after they stepped over the line that had been drawn when they’d split up. She wonders if they’ll fall asleep or if they’ll stay awake. Either would be fine with her, as the morning always brought about something slow and languid full of broken sighs and full body glow.</p>
<p class="p1">So lost is she in her fantasies that she doesn’t notice his hand moving slowly up her side to trace the outline of her breast. She lets out a small noise and looks at him. There’s a mischievous glint in his eyes, and she feels a matching smile spread across her face. She hooks her leg over his hips and pushes him onto his back. She settles easily over him, both hands braced on his chest. His eyes drift appreciatively over her body, and his hands come to settle on her hips.</p>
<p class="p1">“You always did like watching me like this, didn’t you?” She teases, rolling her hips lightly.</p>
<p class="p1">He hums in agreement. “If only you could see how good you look from here.”</p>
<p class="p1">His hand runs down her lower stomach to come to her center, his thumb rubbing slow circles on her clit. Her eyes flutter closed, a broken whimper coming out at the sensation.</p>
<p class="p1">“See? Like that.” His voice is low. “I wish you could see how <em>beautiful </em>you look right now.”</p>
<p class="p1">(Lin often wonders what it would be like if people know that Tenzin could be like this. She doesn’t think anyone, man or woman, would survive. Because <em>Spirits</em>, it does something to her, hearing those words from him.)</p>
<p class="p1">She cants her hips against his, searching for more friction that he refuses to give. She’s about to make a noise of protest, but he speaks before she can.</p>
<p class="p1">“Do you want to stay like this or do you want me on top again?” He asks.</p>
<p class="p1">Lin smiles down at him. “I want to stay like this.”</p>
<p class="p1">A few practiced movements later and he’s inside of her, both of them stopping to take a breath at the sensation. Lin would never admit it out loud, but she’s spent more time than she’d like imagining this moment. It’s already gone so differently from how she imagined it that it all will remain a fantasy. But <em>this</em> she hasn’t forgotten. She hasn’t forgotten how good he feels, how right it always felt being with him. She fights off the way the word <em>home</em> flits around her head because this is new, this is them starting over, but she can’t deny that coming home with him like this has felt like coming <em>home</em> in a way that entering her own small apartment hasn’t felt in years.</p>
<p class="p1">Instead, she moves her hips insistently against Tenzin’s distracting herself from any thoughts that don’t serve her in this moment. But as he touches her, all thoughts that aren’t zeroed in on everywhere they’re connected fly out the window. His touch is fire, burning pathways on her skin that haven’t been lit in so long. He pulls her down and kisses her, swallowing the moan on her tongue. Lin feels like she could combust from the heat licking through her veins. It’s torturous and wonderful and she knows that it will end soon.</p>
<p class="p1">In what feels like both an eternity and only a few minutes later, both of them are coming, their moans reverberating in the room. They lay together for a few moments, catching their breath and exchanging lazy kisses and half formed sentences. In the end, it’s Tenzin who gets up and cleans them both up before climbing sleepily into bed next to her.</p>
<p class="p1">In the moments he is gone, the bed gets cold and Lin is unsure of what to do. Her dress lays pooled on the floor, and it’s not exactly appropriate to wear home. She’s on the verge of sleep and so is Tenzin, but if she’s to seep here, she wants to sleep in this bed, next to him. Not in the guest room.</p>
<p class="p1">She could take Oogie herself, as he knows how to get home on his own. She could call in a favor from the ferry on the City side.</p>
<p class="p1">Lin desperately wants to reach across the bed and curl into Tenzin. She’s relieved when he opens his arms and looks at her expectantly. She scoots closer, resting her head on his chest, and listening to his heartbeat.</p>
<p class="p1">“My intention was that you’d stay the night,” Tenzin says quietly. “But if you’d like me to take you home, I can.”</p>
<p class="p1">Lin looks up at him and smiles. “I would love to stay here tonight.”</p>
<p class="p1">“I have clothes you can borrow to wear home tomorrow. You can leave your dress here to be cleaned. And,” blush colors his face, “You’re welcome to come back and stay any time you’d like.”</p>
<p class="p1">“Are you sure?” She understands what his offer really is. A second chance at <em>them</em>.</p>
<p class="p1">Tenzin nods. “It only took so long for me to get enough courage to ask you to do this because I spent a lot of time reflecting on whether or not I wanted it.”</p>
<p class="p1">The statement doesn’t hurt her in the slightest. She knows exactly what he’s talking about, and she knows that the only reason they’re both here now is because both of them want it.</p>
<p class="p1">"I did the same thing.” She confesses.</p>
<p class="p1">She stifles a yawn, then, and Tenzin drops a kiss to the top of her head. She moves closer to him and her eyes flutter closed.</p>
<p class="p1">“Sleep, badgermole. We can talk more about this in the morning.”</p>
<p class="p1">“‘Night, airhead.”</p>
<p class="p1">
  <em>In the morning, she finds her name still carved in the place where she’d put it all those years ago.</em>
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